flygod

Southampton is easy to get to from London - maybe not the great old days of a train right to the quayside, but frequent trains direct from central London. Standard class from about $13, first class from c$40 - 90 minutes journey, service runs every 15 minutes or so! Check thetrainline.com

Hi, On Insignia next month and it seems there are two cruise terminals - one is Baie des Tourelles, close to the town centre (looks like the old terminal), the other is the Pointe Simon one, a bit further out and with a long jetty and big modern buildings on the shore. Looking to hire a car from Enterprise and don't know which port to put!

Just off Windstar - and one of the best things was room service would deliver to anywhere on the ship. Even from the dining room. So we sat outside at night by the pool under the stars for dinner most nights! We just love eating outdoors. Can you do something similar on Oceania's Insignia in the Caribbean? Thanks

Hi all, Not long back from a 18 day Tahiti cruise - and wanted to mention the Crew Welfare Fund. It's there to help the entire crew, and our gift was prompted by an aside from the hotel captain in another conversation that last Christmas there wasn't very much money in the fund for small gifts for the staff working away from home and families. (Don't worry, the problem was solved - everyone had a Happy Christmas!) On the last day, I went to reception and asked how I could donate. The staff looked amazed that I even knew about it, and said no problem: they had a form and it could be charged to our shipboard account. When I filled in $300 - for an 18-day cruise - they seemed amazed! We then had a letter of thanks from the Hotel Captain, a visit from her to say we had made 110 people very happy, and a few hours later the Captain, as she passed, stopped to say thank you too! Now, I hadn't told my wife I was doing this, so - with all this attention - she was then asking: What on earth have you done? After explaining, she was saying maybe I should have given even more, after all $300 was less than $3 per crew member and less than $15 a day. (You have to remember, I am Scottish and she is Spanish, so tipping is not an engrained part of our culture.) So the background to our cruise: It was not easy sailing! With bad weather, the first announcement on board was that all the port stops were changing for the following week. Then we skipped a port because of the weather! The week after, one of the engines broke down, so we had to miss another port! And it rained a lot!! So the entire crew was fantastic, despite all the hassles these changes were causing them. The ladies on reception, having to rebook and rebook and rebook excursions - the ship's ones and the ones we'd booked ourselves. And dealing with stressed passengers! The kitchen crew: the deck BBQ was going to be rescheduled inside, then it was postponed for a day, the beach BBQ changed at the last minute etc etc. The engine room crew having to strip an engine and fix it. Many of the crew unexpectedly being unable to send messages to their families because we were at sea and not in port. That's why I felt tipping the chefs, waiters or our cabin attendant - hi to Rusi, you are a star - was not enough. Everyone's happy when the sun shines, it's the rain that causes the strain! Yet with all that strain, the whole crew were simply fabulous. So if you have a spare $50, pop it in the welfare fund.

Nope! Missed Rangiroa due to high winds - and a broken engine. So we couldn't get through the pass safely! Then we headed straight for Raiatea so we could dock on the quayside because of high winds: so the Riatea and Tahaa days were swapped over, then the deck BBQ last night was postponed to tonight! Forecast really isn't really all that great for the rest of the week! One poor week was OK, but two and half is dreadful luck.

Our current trip was disrupted by the weather. We arrived at Bora Bora the night before from Tahaa at 10pm. First tenders at 8.00 the next morning and the following one - today!

You could try Georges at https://www.tahiti-air-lagon.com/ if you want to fly - albeit an ultralight. We are going to visit and say hello on September 2nd. Or you could come and fly in our new flight simulator here in Scotland - this was me flying from Papeete to Moorea last night!

Veuve Cliquot Rose and ex-Sea Dream - you're my type of cruiser!

@Piaa We got this message back from Europcar regarding the 6th and 16th September. So if you would like to share a taxi?: Iaorana we offer you the preferential rate of the FIAT PANDA at 8000xpf per day On the other hand, the offer is only available from the europcar agency located in fare. Here is a number of an ALBERT taxi at + 689 87 74 08 77.

Hi Piaa, We will be in Huahine on Sep 6th and Sep 16th - so we'll meet of board, I'm sure. I have tried Europcar to rent for the day - so happy to give you a lift to Fare, if we get a response. Otherwise, Huahine Dream Tours say they need six people to pick up from the boat.

Plus 1 for @Joc123 In Scotland, one used to tip a barber, taxi driver and restaurant staff. On a bus tour, there would be a "whip round" for the driver - ie someone would pass a hat round and people would put a few pounds in it. That's it. Now, following the introduction of Uber etc, most folk now don't tip taxi drivers. I still tip a barber - after all, they hold a cut-throat razor to one's neck! In restaurants, most now include "service" in the bill, so waiting staff really don't expect a tip. As for my business, the only people to tip are the - once or twice in a year - Americans. Frankly, it is embarrassing. We all try to be as friendly and welcoming as possible, and know that people from different countries expect different things and try to provide that as part of the experience. Many UK folk are very tolerant of very poor service. So if we had a tipping culture here in Scotland, we might feel that we were just trying for tips by offering excellent service instead of just trying to provide excellent service because that's who we are. Hence the embarrassment with North American folks! (And an extra £10 or £20 a couple of times a year doesn't make much difference to annual income. I'd just rather not be embarrassed!)

Hi, Will say hi to Charley and John from you! So on the Moto Mahea day, it is still possible to do one's own thing on Tahaa? And thanks for the Candles tips - eating outdoors (in the warmth!) is a big thing for me! But we are jumping ship for the first night in Bora Bora to stay in an overwater bungalow at the IC Thalasso Spa - I have a free night from a UK credit card for any IHG hotel, so I figured one that costs £1500 a night is a good use of it!! Best wishes, Colin

Hi all, On Wind Spirit 31st August to 18th September. Just started planning our trip - only three weeks before we head from Scotland to Tahiti via Australia and New Zealand! What I can't find are where and when the beach BBQs are held (presuming two since this is a Collector trip? Thanks in advance and I look forward to seeing a few CCers on board!

Hi Robert, Can't tell you about Windstar excursions, but we were in Panama in January for a couple of days. It was our second time in Panama (always good availability for airmiles on Iberia from Madrid!) and we went to Taboga Island - a simple day excursion from the end of the causeway. Taboga Express was who we used - book tickets for Taboga at least a day in advance, the Panamanians love going here! While there are street food shacks on he beach, here is also a fabulous hotel, Villa Caprichosa for lunch. Great cocktails, amazing food and fabulous views! It is a bit of a walk from the ferry, up the hill - hence the views! - but I think hey will meet you with a gold cart if you book. (and I would book and ask for the window seats.) Back at the beach, people were swimming in the sea and there are shower cubicles for changing at $1 or $2. The ferry to and from Taboga passes through the Panama roads, so a great view of all the shipping waiting for canal transits. Back in Panama, Caso Viejo is worth a wander around - and there are some good rooftop restaurants. We ate at Casa Casco on Plaza Herrera on one of their two-seat balconies (there's a lift in the building) and the food was amazing. If you are really into history and ruins, then Panama Viejo is worth a visit. A bit like visiting old Roman ruins! I am assuming you'll see plenty of the canal from the ship!

Best wishes for a speedy recovery. Don't rush things, let the body heal. I spent two years in a customer-facing role here in Scotland and never got Covid. I was the only one of 12 at Christmas in Santa Fe who never got Covid. And now I have had it twice this year (March and August) and am awaiting the test result for a possible third bout! And my fourth vaccine is booked for November. There is a lot of it about now, and it's pretty much established medical knowledge that the vaccine only reduces the effects rather than offers complete protection. But hey, I'd rather be sick than dead! And I travel, and mix, and meet, and live life. Life for me is quality, not quantity.